UK Weighs New Penalties For Breaching Financial Sanctions

Law360, London (December 1, 2016, 7:57 PM GMT) -- The U.K. government announced Thursday it is weighing the introduction of greater powers for its financial sanctions enforcement office to issue seven-figure fines against offenders, aimed at helping maintain the “integrity of and confidence” in the U.K. financial services sector.

The proposed new legislation will give the Treasury’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation the ability to levy monetary penalties with a statutory maximum of either £1 million ($1.3 million) or 50 percent of the value of the breach, whichever is higher, against those who breach serious...